The Insider: Lucky few are going locomotive over Wi-Fi access

Published
9:00 pm PST, Sunday, March 27, 2005

ALL ABOARD THE INTERNET EXPRESS: Internet junkies who ride the 6:45 a.m. Sounder train from Tacoma to Seattle should make sure to jump in the first car.

That's where Casey Halverson -- a 25-year-old network engineer -- rigs up a free wireless Internet connection for his fellow commuters each day. (He does the same thing on the way home in car "G" on the 5:10 p.m. train).

Using a laptop and a Sprint wireless card, Halverson transmits the signal throughout the train car so passengers can access the Internet, send e-mail or watch video. About five commuters have discovered the service, which Halverson said is not affected by the speed of the train but does slow with more users.

"It just seems like a real cool concept to be able to use the Internet from a train," said Halverson, who set up the service about three weeks ago. Or -- as Halverson stated so eloquently in a recent blog entry: "Trains with no Internet access suck."

A developer is proposing a project at the World Financial Center that would provide not just a home for Cirque du Soleil but greatly expanded retail space -- including, the newsletter says, the first Nordstrom store in Manhattan. Slatin Report says Nordstrom's architectural firm, Callison Architects, has drawn up preliminary site plans.

The proposal suggests some wonderful opportunities for circus performers to perform their dazzling, gravity-defying stunts in, on and through the racks of clothes at Nordstrom, narrowly avoiding shoppers as they swing, leap and tumble from menswear to women's shoes. Alas, it's apparently not to be. A Nordstrom spokeswoman said Friday that the company currently has no plans to build a store in Manhattan.

DO WE SEE A CONNECTION HERE? Condoms and home pregnancy test kits sold in retail stores nationwide are being recalled by their distributor, Harmony Brands, because they may not work correctly, The Associated Press reported Friday.

The Oak Park, Mich., company said it is recalling Lover brand latex condoms and B-Sure brand one-step home pregnancy test kits. Both products were sold nationally in various retail outlets, including dollar stores and convenience stores.

Harmony Brands said consumers who have these unused products should return them to the place of purchase for a refund. The company said it has not received any consumer reports of the products failing but was initiating the recall because the Food and Drug Administration said the safety and efficacy of the items could not be assured.

THE EDGEWATER RAT: There's a big rodent in front of the Edgewater Hotel -- a 15-foot inflatable rat with beady red eyes and a long gray tail.

The rat, which does not have a name and was on display last Friday, was set up by labor groups who are protesting what they say are substandard wages being paid for a non-union bathroom remodeling project at the hotel.

The giant rat has distracted pedestrians and motorists on the busy waterfront thoroughfare, with Edgewater general manager Karl Kruger saying some have registered complaints with the city traffic department.

Still, Kruger -- who said the protesters have a legal right to picket -- was baffled by the oversized rodent. "Do you know what that rat stands for?" he asked. "I have no idea."

Randy Scott, an organizer with the Plumbers & Pipefitters Local 32, said the message is pretty simple.

"Having a rat in front of your hotel is not a positive," said Scott, chuckling that hotel managers did not understand the symbolism.

Joined by about 10 other protesters last Friday, Scott said the labor groups would continue to demonstrate in front of the hotel until the remodel is completed.

The construction project, which is managed by Ideal Services, is expected to end in June. The protests -- and the giant rat -- have not impacted business at the hotel, said Kruger.

"It is more of a conversation piece," he said.

TRUST ME, OK? The Insider's friends at Edelman public relations in Seattle recently sent over a nice, glossy, color, unsolicited report about trust. In it, opinion leaders worldwide, including 400 in the United States, answered questions about the concept and who are some of the most, and least, credible spokespeople in corporations and industries.

Among some of the most credible spokespeople in the United States: academics, doctors and "a person like yourself." Among the least credible: chief executives, attorneys, union spokespeople and public relations representatives.

So, the Insider has some questions:

In the Seattle area, can all those doctors who also are chief executives at all those biotechnology companies actually be trusted? Should the Insider tell them about this report?

Also, if some public relations representatives have questionable credibility, how much stock should the Insider put in this nice, glossy, color, unsolicited report?

By the way, the company said that media articles are much more believable than advertising.

But chief executives and public relations folks, there is no need to worry. The Insider enjoys talking with all of you and will take your call at any hour of the day.

Perhaps, though, the Insider should go to a mall and find a "person like yourself" to interview.